1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to inflation valves. More particularly, this invention relates to inflation valves designed to operate in low-pressure environments for permitting the inflation or deflation of an article to which the valve is connected. Further, other embodiments of this invention relate to relief valves for relieving pressure within an article.
2. Description of the Background Art
Presently, there exists a multitude of inflation valves designed to be connected to an article for inflating or deflating the same. Typical prior art valves comprise an outer flange which is designed to be sealed to an opening in the article to be inflated and a one-way or check valve mechanism that allows the article to be inflated with a fluid such as air or water without back flow through the valve during inflation due to the one-way or check valve mechanism of the valve itself. In some prior art valves, the one-way valve mechanism is mounted to the body of the valve whereas in other prior art valves, the valve mechanism is mounted within the cap itself
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,701,579 discloses a low-pressure one-way valve for inflatable articles having an axially movable plug which can be moved to a filling position for inflating the article and to a sealing position for preventing deflation of the article. U.S. Pat. No. 3,068,494 discloses an inflation valve which cooperates with an inflation bladder having a duckbill valve connected interially within the article to be inflated such that the duckbill valve functions as a one-way check valve to prevent back flow of the air out of the article during inflation. U.S. Pat. No. 2,736,333 discloses a low pressure sealing valve having a sealing flapper mounted to the underside of a cap that fits within a valve body, wherein the flapper serves as a one-way check valve during inflation but may be burped to permit deflation by means of a mechanical lever which unseats it from the underside of the cap. U.S. Pat. No. 2,839,073 discloses a simple inflation valve wherein the underside of the body includes a cut which allows inflation but retards deflation. U.S. Pat. No. 3,429,330 discloses a one-way valve intended to be inserted within a tube which then may be secured to an article to inflated wherein the one-way operation of the valve is accomplished by means of a spring-loaded plunger having a head portion which extends from a body portion in such a manner that upon exertion of pressure upon the spring-loaded plunger the valve moves to an open position whereas without such pressure the head seals against the body to prevent deflation of the article. U.S. Pat. No. 3,995,653 discloses an inflation valve having a flapper mounted to the underside of a cap which threads onto a body, with the body including a flange for allowing connection to the article to being inflated. The flapper functions as a one-way valve to permit inflation of the article while precluding deflation due to back flow. Moreover, the flapper valve may be sealed between the body and the cap upon full tightening of the cap within the body thereby preventing any further inflation (or deflation) of the article. U.S. Pat. No. 4,478,587 discloses an inflation valve, commonly used in inflatable articles such as boats, wherein the one-way valve mechanism is mounted within a cap and includes a spring-loaded plunger configuration that may be cocked in a fully opened position allowing deflation and uncocked to a closed position whereupon the valve operates as a one-way check valve during inflation. U.S. Pat. No. 4,579,141 discloses an inflation valve containing a flapper diaphragm carried by an insert mounted within the valve body. U.S. Pat. No. 4,766,628 discloses an inflation valve having a one-way valve mechanism wherein such mechanism comprises a spring-loaded plunger that is operable in a manner similar to U.S. Pat. No. 4,478,587 described above. U.S. Pat. No. 5,203,831 discloses an inflation valve comprising a cap mounted within a body wherein the body supports a flapper for one-way flow during inflation of the article. U.S. Pat. No. 4,927,397 discloses an inflation valve having a one-way check valve mechanism mounted to an insert affixed to the valve body, wherein the one-way valve mechanism comprises a spring-loaded, conically-shaped seal. U.S. Pat. No. 3,785,395 discloses an air valve having a flapper that can be tilted in a non-sealing position allowing deflation of the article. U.S. Pat. No. 2,679,857 discloses an inflation valve having a sealing disk which is urged against a valve seat within the body of the valve thereby allowing inflation but precluding deflation unless the inflation disk is manually forced away from the valve seat Unfortunately, many of these prior art inflation valves are expensive to manufacture and assemble, and therefore have limited application.
Similar to inflation valves, there presently exist many type of relief valves designed to relive pressure within an article. Due to their particular design, many of such relief valves are difficult to manufacture and assemble. Therefore they are too costly for use in low-cost articles such as inflatable mattresses where it would otherwise be desirable to relive pressure in the mattress to adjust the hardness or softness of the mattress after inflation.
Therefore, it is an object of this invention to provide an improvement which overcomes the aforementioned inadequacies of the prior art devices and provides an improvement which is a significant contribution to the advancement of the inflation valve art.
Another object of this invention is to provide an inflation valve for low pressure applications such as the inflation or deflation of an inflatable article such as an inflatable boat, personal floatation device, or a waterbed.
Another object of this invention is to provide an inflation valve for an inflatable article wherein the valve cap includes a one-way check valve mechanism that allows inflation but precludes deflation of the article unless the cap is removed from the body of the valve.
Another object of this invention is to provide a one-way inflation valve having a low profile design wherein the one-way valve mechanism forms a part of the cap and wherein the cap threadably engages almost fully within the body of the valve so as to achieve a substantially flush configuration with the valve body and hence, with the article to which the valve is to be connected.
Another object of this invention is to provide an inflation valve having a low profile design as described above that includes means of fully tightening the cap into position to capture the one-way flapper between the cap and the valve body thereby precluding any further inflation (or deflation) of the article.
Another object of this invention is to provide a low profile one-way inflation valve wherein the cap thereof includes a slot to facilitate the use of a coin or other tool to fully tighten the cap into position or for loosening the cap once tightened thereby obviating the need for the cap to include a significantly protruding portion that may be grasped by a person""s hand.
Another object of this invention is to provide an inexpensive relief valve capable of being implemented in low cost articles for relieving pressure within the articles.
The foregoing has outlined some of the pertinent objects of the invention. These objects should be construed to be merely illustrative of some of the more prominent features and applications of the intended invention. Many other beneficial results can be attained by applying the disclosed invention in a different manner or modifying the invention within the scope of the disclosure. Accordingly, other objects and a fuller understanding of the invention may be had by referring to the summary of the invention and the detailed description of the preferred embodiment in addition to the scope of the invention defined by the claims taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
For the purpose of summarizing this invention, this invention comprises a low profile inflation valve intended to be installed with an article to inflated with air, water or other fluid. The valve of the invention comprises a valve body which is sealed, such as by an adhesive, heat-sealing or RF sealing, to a corresponding opening in the article to be inflated. The body comprises a generally circular cylindrical configuration with internal threads for receiving a cap. The cap correspondingly comprises a circular cylindrical configuration having exterior threads for threaded engagement into the valve body. A flapper is affixed to the underside of the cap and functions as a one-way valve to prevent fluid from within the article from escaping therefrom when the cap is partially threaded within the body and yet which allows inflation of the article. Moreover, full tightening of the cap within the body sealingly entraps the flapper between the cap in a lower portion of the body so as to create an airtight seal and prevent further inflation (or deflation) of the article. A dust cap is provided for covering the cap during use of the article after inflation so as to prevent dust and other debris from contaminating the interior of the cap and otherwise obstructing or interfering with the proper sealing of the flapper to the underside of the cap. Preferably, the dust cap is tethered to the cap by means of a tether having a living hinge and the cap is tethered to the body by means of another tether which allows the cap to be fully removed from the body and moved off to the side during deflation of the article.
An important feature of the valve of the invention is its low profile design. The cap is configured to threadably engage almost fully into the body such that only a protruding upper edge of the cap extends from the body itself. Hence, the cap is substantially flush with the body once fully tightened into position. Moreover, the cap includes at least one web having a coin slot that facilitates fill tightening of the cap within the body after inflation and allows convenient loosening of the cap from the body for deflating the article.
The low profile design of the valve of the invention allows the valve to be utilized in connection with a larger variety of inflatable articles than could be achieved by prior art valves as described above. Moreover, the design of the invention is such that it can be economically manufactured and assembled at costs significantly lower than known prior art valves having similar features.
The invention further comprises various embodiments of a relief valve having a design that is very economical to manufacture and assemble and which therefore can be implemented in low cost articles. For example, once such implementation may include an inflation mattress for adjusting the softness or firmness of the mattress once inflated.
The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the more pertinent and important features of the present invention in order that the detailed description of the invention that follows may be better understood so that the present contribution to the art can be more fully appreciated. Additional features of the invention will be described hereinafter which form the subject of the claims of the invention. It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the conception and the specific embodiment disclosed may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present invention. It should also be realized by those skilled in the art that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the spirt and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.